GDHQNHL15_2pg-Washington Capitals 2

NJ Devils Gameday HQ

spring, will have some big-time
explaining to do.
The holdovers are pretty
steady, but depth will continue
to be a problem. Mike Green is a
steady force who can shoot well
from the point and also stand
up enemy forwards at the other
end. Young John Carlson has
great size and a similar ability to
provide cover with his shot on
offense. Adding the two of them
to Niskanen and Orlik should be
a good start toward making Washington better on defense. In Trotz’s
structure system, having two-way defensemen can help.
There is hope that 23-year old Dmitry Orlov, who had a plus-11 rating
last year in 54 games, will be ready to contribute at the beginning of
the season. He is recovering from a wrist injury. Karl Alzner is another
big man on the blue line and showed himself to be a good passer, along
with a physical presence, last season. Connor Carrick, a 20-year old
pup, and 23-year old Nate Schmidt saw some action last year and might
get a chance at more time in 2014-15, if the Caps can’t come up with
three solid tandems.
Goaltending
This is a problem area and could preclude a deep postseason run—if
the Caps make it to the playoffs. Last year, Braden Holtby posted a
lackluster 2.85 GAA and had a mediocre .915 save percentage. It doesn’t
matter how many goals Ovechkin scores if the back line of defense isn’t
able to stand tall. Holtby’s 2.85 number was a sizeable rise from his 2.58
figure in 2012-13, so there is hope he can rebound, but even that mark
doesn’t put him in the discussion for the Vezina Trophy.
Because of that, the Caps imported Justin Peters, who has been a
backup with Carolina during his five years in the league, to compete
with Philipp Grubauer for the backup spot. Neither is a big threat
to supplant Holtby, so it’s not as if Washington can declare that its
goaltending problems are over. More than likely, Trotz will hope that
the team’s upgraded defense and potent attack will be able to carry
the team forward.
Power Play
Although last year’s 23.37 percent conversion rate was down from
2012-13’s remarkable 26.83 figure, it was still stout and shows exactly
how much trouble the Caps can cause for rivals on the advantage.
It begins with Ovechkin, whose 24 power-play goals make him the
most fearsome force in the league when the Caps are up a man or two.
He has the ability to exploit enemy weaknesses and convert. He may not
replicate his 2013-14 number, but he gives the Caps a huge weapon on
the power play.
If Brouwer didn’t play with Ovechkin, he might not have 12 powerplay
goals, since enemy penalty kill units might pay more attention to
him. But he is productive on the man advantage and gives Washington
a dangerous second option. Backstrom, Ward and Johansson are also
dangerous on the power play, and each scored six times last year. Carlson
is solid on the point, as evidenced by his five goals.
Penalty Kill
If the Caps are going to continue to commit as many penalties that
lead to man advantages for rivals—they had the eighth-most last year—
then they’ll have to do better than 16th in the league on the penalty kill.
Expect the
arrivals of Niskanen
and Orpik to make
immediate impacts
here. They, Carlson
and Alzner will likely
be the defensemen
on the kill. The most
interesting thing to
look at is how the
forwards perform in
this area, now that
Trotz has taken over.
He will likely have a
much more aggressive
approach to those
positions when the
Caps are a man down.
There has to be a
philosophical change,
because the same
Nicklas Backstrom
forwards are likely to
Patrick McDermott/NHL/Getty Images
be on the kill units,
and they weren’t very good last year. Ward, Brouwer, Laich and Chimera
are the likely front line performers up front, and they will benefit from
Trotz’s new approach.
Prediction
As long as Ovechkin is firing away from the wing, the Caps have
the potential to be dangerous. The question is whether Washington
can be a complete team, or if it will continue to be a high-scoring
outfit that can’t convert when the games get tighter, and the
stakes get higher. The Capitals will make the playoffs, but don’t
expect a deep run.
Scoreboard
2013 2012 2011 2010 2009
PLAYOFF FINISH DNQ Conf QF Conf SF Conf SF Conf QF
REGULAR SEASON 38-30-14 27-18-3 42-32-8 48-23-11 54-15-13
POINT TOTAL 90 57 92 107 121
SHOOTOUT RECORD 10-11 3-0 4-4 5-6 5-6
GOALS SCORED 235 149 222 224 318
GOALS ALLOWED 240 130 230 197 233
POWER PLAY % 23.37 26.83 16.73 17.49 25.24
PENALTY KILL % 82.04 77.91 81.58 85.62 78.80